Australia news live: Albanese lectures G7 on critical minerals; sharp rise in people identifying as LGBTQI
Update:
Date: 2025-06-17T20:31:47.000Z
Title: Welcome
Content: Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I'm Martin Farrer with the best of the overnight stories, and then my colleague Nick Visser will pick up the slack.
Anthony Albanese has been busy while most of us slept, with bilateral meetings (including a hug with Zelenskyy) and an intervention in a session on critical minerals. All eyes this morning will be on his upcoming chat with Keir Starmer.
Back home, Richard Marles refused to be drawn on the Trump administration's policy on the conflict between Israel and Iran or whether Australia would weigh in on behalf of its ally. He told ABC's 7.30 last night that Australia was 'deeply concerned' about the conflict broadening and was 'very much calling for de-escalation'.
Jim Chalmers will lay out his key priorities for reforming the economy when he speaks at the National Press Club at lunchtime, as he confronts 'intensifying pressures' on the economy. He will say his three priorities are boosting productivity, fixing the budget and making Australia more resilient.
More Australians are identifying as lesbian, gay or bisexual, with experts likening it to the sexual revolution of previous decades. A new study claims the LGBTQI population doubled between 2012 and 2020, increasing from 3.3% to 5.8% of adults over 15.
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